Perth’s Adam Ricci rejects the friendzone on latest single '2 Many Friends'

Adam Ricci is an up-and-coming R&B and hip-hop artist from Perth whose melodic capabilities and clever lyricism are undeniably present in his latest single ‘2 Many Friends’. The 20-year-old encapsulates a personal anecdote within the track, conveying a situation in which he wanted to pursue a romantic relationship with a person who turned around and said they just wanted to be friends. Instead, Ricci rejected this person’s suggestion, singing “You said you wanna stay friends, I got too many of them”.

Adam describes the writing of the song as a way for him express his thoughts and experiences and to create art that resonates with his listeners. “After the situation happened and I gave it some time, I literally thought “Damn, those words would be crazy good lyrics”.”

Ricci produced the beat alongside fellow Perth artist and producer Jarrod Jeremiah and freestyled the lyrics of the song in 14 minutes. “I had so much to say, so many lyrics just flowing out in that 14-minute voice memo when I first recorded over the beat. The song could have had five verses, I had to just pick and choose what I wanted to fit into the song.”

Ricci has been musically-inclined since a young age, learning to play classical guitar and singing in the school choir since he was eight years old. In his final year of high school, Ricci began producing and recording music, experimenting from his bedroom. This was where he recorded ‘2 Many Friends’. Engaging in producing and recording music has led Adam to establish his unique guitar-driven production sound and refine his music engineering skills. He has co-produced hot tracks including ‘All-Star’ by Yourboymars featuring Shadow, ‘Wasted Times’ by Young Pascal and ‘Orange and Teal.’ by Tobias.

The rhythm of the track and Ricci's lyrical flow satisfyingly bounce off each other and work together to create an engaging hip-hop sound. The song begins with the repetition of four acoustic guitar notes, played sequentially to form a melodic riff. This riff is muffled and distant at first but gradually transforms into crisp, clear notes. The Perth artist's vocals are introduced as he sings the chorus, “You said you wanna stay friends, I got too many of them / Say you wanna make plans, I got too many of them”.

The anecdote is presented with clarity and lyrical precision allowing listeners to tap into the story being told and to feel relate to the emotions Ricci endured during the situation, as he sings, “Remember times we used to chill up at your crib / We would talk until the morning, shit, I thought that was legit”. He went into the situation hoping to find love, but after the person he was seeing for a few months asked to just stay friends, Ricci switches up and raps, “I don’t need no love to fall asleep”.

Adam Ricci’s fusion of R&B and hip-hop, in tandem with his melodic rap flow can be compared to artists like A Boogie Wit da Hoodie, Bazzi and J.I. Overall, ‘2 Many Friends’ effectively delivers a mild heartbreak story within a rhythmic, catchy, yet chilled track and confirms that Adam Ricci has a promising future in music ahead of him. The music video for ‘2 Many Friends’ will be out Wednesday evening.

Words by Liv Declerck